Corey LaJoie to fill in for Chase Elliott at Gateway

Corey LaJoie will fill in for Chase Elliott for the June 4 race at Gateway, Hendrick Motorsports said Tuesday.

LaJoie will drive Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet this Sunday. When Elliott missed races earlier this season, the second-generation driver was rumored as a favorite to fill in before Hendrick named Josh Berry to the job.

LaJoie sits 20th in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings, only 38 points out of a playoff spot. He has driven Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet to one top-5 finish and eight top-20s in the first 14 races.

Since 2018, the second-generation driver has steadily progressed. In 2019, he earned his first two career top-10 finishes and improved his average finish from 31.9 to 25.9.

Each year since then, LaJoie has scored at least one top-10 finish and improved his average finish each year. This year, he has an average finish of 19.1, compared to 24.3 last year.